Sunday night, the Grammy Awards took place at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. The award ceremony was focused on highlighting the best music and performers of the past year, but it first served as a home to a Kobe Bryant tribute. The former NBA star was honored following his tragic death on Sunday by having his two jerseys highlighted in the arena’s rafters.
Kobe Bryant’s jersey lit up inside the rafters at Staples Center as the #Grammys about to start @THR pic.twitter.com/WtkE5UVbec
— Kirsten Chuba (@KirstenChuba) January 27, 2020
According to Yahoo, the tribute did not end there. The crews headed to the rafters between rehearsals and moved the myriad banners around to properly pay tribute to Bryant. The various banners highlighting Hall of Fame players and championships were covered up while Bryant’s two jerseys were moved side-by-side.
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Finally, the Recording Academy’s interim CEO, Harvey Mason Jr., asked those in attendance to join him in a moment of silence to honor Bryant’s memory. This occurred during the non-televised portion of the ceremony.
The STAPLES Center served as the home of Bryant and the Lakers throughout his 20-year career. The 18-time All-Star drew fans to the City of Angels every single game and helped pack the arena.
There were concerns following Bryant’s death that the awards ceremony would not properly honor the NBA star. The fans wanted the entire show dedicated to his memory or even completely canceled due to the tragic nature of his death. They felt that Bryant had made such an impact on that specific location – and the city of L.A. – that it was worth postponing the Grammy Awards in order to truly honor his memory on Sunday afternoon and into the night.
Ultimately, the show did go on as planned as multitudes of celebrities arrived at the STAPLES Center. They were met by masses of Lakers fans who had shown up to pay tribute to Bryant. The authorities requested that the fanbase remain away from the area due to everything taking place, but they did not listen.
Those that rooted for Bryant showed up in his jersey and dropped off flowers in a makeshift tribute. Others simply stood outside the Center and began chanting “Kobe.” The ones that couldn’t make it to STAPLES Center headed to the Calabasas crash site and other areas around Los Angeles in order to pay tribute to the fallen star.
Photo Credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images
